WMRA Feature

According to one report, nearly four in 10 Harrisonburg residents above the federal poverty line still have trouble making ends meet.  That leads to difficult choices -- pay the rent, or buy groceries? Fix the car, or pay for prescriptions? As the number of people facing these questions increases, so does the demand for more affordable housing.  In the second part in an occasional WMRA series on living costs, Randi B. Hagi reports.

Immigration advocates hosted an event that brought about 60 people to Asbury United Methodist Church in Harrisonburg on Saturday.  The workshop focused on immigrant rights and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency – or I.C.E. - in the Shenandoah Valley.  WMRA’s Calvin Pynn reports.

Two professors in James Madison University’s biology department are part of a team studying whether limb regeneration in animals can be duplicated in humans.  WMRA’s Calvin Pynn reports.

You might think that with all the superhero blockbusters in theaters these days, comic book stores would be raking in the cash.  But almost the exact opposite is true.  WMRA’s Jason Barr explores the unique challenges these small businesses are facing.

After originating in Charlottesville, the Impulse Gay Social Club can now be found at a second location.  It opened in Waynesboro this month for members.  WMRA’s Mike Tripp has the story.

Fifty years ago, Harrisonburg resident Ed Morrison was shattered when his 18-year-old brother Mike was brutally murdered the night of his senior prom, along with his date Debbie Means, in a small Illinois town.

As midwifery grows in popularity among expectant mothers locally and nationwide, one practice in Harrisonburg is celebrating its 20th anniversary, as well as recognition for being one of the first.  WMRA's Bridget Manley reports.

Ian Munro is a business reporter for the Daily News Record in Harrisonburg.  When he discovered that the umemployment rate for workers with physical, mental or emotional disabilities is now at a historically low level, he knew there was a story to tell.

This weekend (July 12-14) is the Red Wing Roots Music Festival, celebrating roots music with artists like Lucinda Williams, The Wood Brothers, and Tim O’Brien.  The festival is organized by Virginia’s The Steel Wheels - they headline the event every year.

How do young musicians hone their craft?  By working with the pros, and the Heifetz International Music Institute, based in Staunton, has spent decades doing just that.  The Institute's annual summer music festival featuring their work kicks off this weekend.  WMRA's Kimberlea Daggy has this preview of the festival, and the story of how it all got started.

Freshman Republican Congressman Ben Cline is continuing to make his way around the sixth district holding town hall meetings.

The Gemeinschaft Home is a nonprofit in Harrisonburg that helps ex-convicts re-enter society.  Their Community Residential Program is open to men coming out of prison with nonviolent criminal records.

After a federal court invalidated a key permit for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, lead partner Dominion Energy has said it intends to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court. As WMRA’s Andrew Jenner reports, the deadline to file that appeal was recently extended to the end of June.

Later this year, the card game Magic: The Gathering will hold a major qualifier tournament in Richmond. The grand prize is a half a million dollars and a seat at the national championship, where prizes can reach even higher.  To get a sense of the magic, WMRA’s Jason Barr talked with a few members of the M-T-G gaming community in Harrisonburg.

This year, NPR held its Student Podcast Challenge and received more than 6000 entries.  Great Oak Academy, a small 6-8th grade school in Harrisonburg recently sent WMRA about a dozen podcasts their students produced and asked us to pick our favorite. 

Houses in Harrisonburg are selling more quickly and going for higher prices than in the past.  The growth of James Madison University is sometimes cited as the main factor, but there’s more to it than that. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports, in the first of an occasional series on housing in our area.

A program that pairs young adults living with disabilities with undergraduate students at James Madison University has made a big difference in preparing both sets of students for life’s challenges. WMRA’s Bridget Manley reports.

Since first winning election last fall, freshman Republican Congressman Ben Cline has been working his way through Virginia’s 6th Congressional District, with the goal of holding town hall meetings in all of its 19 cities and counties. On Wednesday evening, Cline visited Amherst County to talk about his first months in office and answer residents’ questions.  WMRA's Andrew Jenner reports.

PrezFest is now over in Charlottesville. The three-day event focused on many topics related to the presidency, including race relations, foreign policy, and even social media and comedy. On its last day, as WMRA's Marguerite Gallorini reports, one of the panels focused on women in leadership and the glass ceiling. The festival then concluded with remarks by former president Bill Clinton.

The Presidential Ideas Festival continues in Charlottesville.  On Wednesday [May 22nd], scholars from UVA and elsewhere formed a panel to talk about a pressing issue of our time: race in America, and in U.S. politics.  WMRA's Marguerite Gallorini reports.

The Presidential Ideas Festival kicked off Tuesday [May 21st] in Charlottesville. Organized by the Miller Center and taking place on University of Virginia grounds, the three-day event aims to examine some of the most pressing challenges facing democracy around the world through the lens of the American presidency. WMRA will give you an overview of each day of this event – which will culminate on Thursday afternoon with a closing keynote from President Bill Clinton. Here’s Marguerite Gallorini reporting on the first day.

Being Sheriff in Virginia’s least populous county means wearing a lot of different hats – and there’s no telling how any given day might go.  As part of an occasional WMRA series on local jails and law enforcement, Andrew Jenner spent a day with Sheriff David Neil, and filed this report.

Governor Ralph Northam visited the Merck pharmaceutical plant in Elkton Monday (May 6).  He announced the company’s plans to invest up to $1 billion over the next three years to expand its manufacturing facility. WMRA’s Randi B. Hagi reports.

Since 2002, Virginia Folklife has supported more than 100 pairs of masters and apprentices from fiddle makers to dancers.  On Sunday, May 5, Folklife will present this year’s Apprenticeship Showcase in Charlottesville.  WMRA’s Chris Boros went to Dixon Studio in Staunton to meet the team of master stained glass artist Ronald Dixon and his apprentice Todd Hinkle.

A few months ago, the City of Charlottesville, the County of Albemarle, and the University of Virginia sent a joint press release asking for community input to help them draft their environmental plans, under their umbrella concept called “Climate Action Together.”

Two JMU seniors have spent over a year working on a project to help introduce families to fresh produce that has been unfamiliar to them in the past. WMRA’s Bridget Manley reports.